Where
Houston Room at Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields8000 St. Martin's Lane
Philadelphia, PA 19118
Driving Directions
Contact
Barbara BallengerChurch of St. Martin-in-the-Fields
215.247.7466 x102
bballenger@stmartinec.org
Sponsors for this seminar include:
Mindfulness and White Privilege
An Anti-Racism Seminar for White People
Fee: $225 (Note new reduced price. Financial assistance also available.)
With mindfulness practices we learn how to stay present and sit with what is true and what’s difficult, noticing our reactions with compassion, care and a wise heart.
The seminar will be held on the following dates at St. Martin's, allowing one week in between for at-home and group work:
- Jan. 15, 3 pm to 5:30
- Jan. 29, 3 pm to 5:30
- Feb. 12, 3 pm to 5:30
- Feb. 26, 3 pm to 5:30
- March 5, 3 pm to 5:30
- March 19, 3 pm to 5:30
- April 8, closing retreat, 10 am to 4 pm
About Financial Assistance
Thanks to underwriting from the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, we have been able to reduce the original fee by a third. Some additional financial assistance is also available. Please contact Barbara Ballenger, bballenger@stmartinec.org or call 215-247-7466 for more information.
About the Program
This seminar blends mindfulness practices with an engaged exploration of racial conditioning to help white people practice anti-racism with intention and self-understanding.
White people in the U.S. have long been shaped by systems that award them unearned social and economic privilege. When they are unaware of this system of privilege and racial conditioning, white people are not free to make skillful choices about how to act within it. Rather they can unwittingly behave in ways that lead to suffering, not only for people of color, but also for themselves, their families and their wider communities. This conditioning also makes it difficult to change the system and themselves.
The Sunday afternoon sessions will include meditation, teachings, participant check-ins, experiential exercises, small group reflections and discussions. Homework will include reading, videos, journaling and exercises.
Note: Previous experience with mindfulness meditation is required
Participants unfamiliar with Mindfulness Meditation are asked to attend a one-day Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation Class on Jan. 7, 2017, from 9:30 am to 4 pm with Deborah Cooper at The Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields. The cost for this class is $50. You can sign up for the class as part of your registration for the MIndfulness and White Privilege seminar. More information can be found here.
The Facilitators
Pamela Freeman is a social worker by training. She works as a psychotherapist with couples, families and individuals, and is a consultant around issues of diversity. She is on the board of Insight Meditation Center in Barre Massachusetts. Pamela is a long time meditator and leads the Philadelphia People of Color Meditation group in Mt Airy. She is also the founder of Playback Theatre, a local playback theatre in Philadelphia.
Deborah Cooper, M.Ed., is a licensed professional counselor in private practice, and was formerly with the Samaritan Counseling Service. She has studied Mindfulness Stress Reduction at Thomas Jefferson Hospital and taught several courses in Mindfulness Meditation. She has a committed personal meditation practice.